DNA-Out of Print Short Fiction July 2014: The Longlist

The DNA-Out of Print Short Fiction Feature, 2014

The Longlist

We had a tremendous variety of submissions to the DNA-Out of Print Short Fiction Contest. Rather unfortunately, a few were sent as attachments and could not be read and some violated the word count restrictions beyond our rather flexible filters. But of the ones we did read, 30 made the longlist. They are listed in order of submission date.

Thank you authors for your strong thoughtful writing. Identifying the shortlist is not going to be easy.

Prashila Naik	Naach Basanti Naach
Sudha Mathew	Left or Right?
Tanuj Solanki	The Sad Unknowability of Dilip Singh
Kulpreet Yadav	Long Way from Home
Nabina Das	Malena Learns the Spices
Aqueous Aura	Cat Smoking
Alex Sobel	Facts of the Heart
Yamini Vijendran	The First Rain
Boby Mohan	The Velvet Glove
Monika Pant	Birdwatcher
Gaurav Deka	The Last Sin
K Sahasranaman	The Curious Case of the Missing Postbox
Shruthi Rao	The Awakening
Anuraag Baruah	The Rainman
Manoshij Banerjee	My Talisman
Sumana Khan	The Triumvirate
Fehmida Zakeer	Babies in the Park
Sanchari B	The Aftereffects of a Nightmare
Tejaswini Apte Rahm	One Hour, Nine Hours Ago
Ajay Patri	Shifting Lives
Rachna Kiri	Mishti Doi
Garima Goel	Petroleum Venus
Sudha Nair	Prying Eyes
Nilanjan Coomar	No Picture
Sreejith Sukumaran	Speechless
Mohit Parikh	A Touch Deep Down
Kennith Rosario	Land Beyond the Growing Hill
Sayantan Sunny Ghosh	Jedi
Deepak Unnikrishnan	The Old Woman Who Could Fly
Hema Raman	All Alone Together

Out of Print Author Series: Sathya Saran

Congratulations to Out of Print author, Sathya Saran whose new book is soon out. 

Two of Sathya's stories, The Anklet and The Lost Note have appeared in Out of Print.  

Clearly music is a theme that resonates with Sathya's sensibilities. The Lost Note is story that brings alive the particular and intimate dynamic of orchestral musicians as the flautist awaits his final cue. The imagery has the quality of a dream filled with a yearning for that elusive lost note.


Sathya's new book, Sun Mere Bandhu Re is a tribute to giant of Hindi film music, S D Burman. The title is taken from a song that he himself sang for the film Sujata.

We asked Sathya to tell us a little bit about what inspired The Lost Note, and about what draws her to the world of music. The answer only deepens the connection between the story and the novel

Sathya: The Lost Note was a story inspired by an evening dedicated to Bimal Roy. Among the songs and performances was a flute recital by Manohari Singh, who was a multi instrument player, and later arranger of music for many music directors. He was one of the few of his time, still alive and able to perform. His recital was so beautiful that the story took shape in my mind soon after.

Unfortunately, Manohari Dada is no more. But he plays a major role in the book, Sun Mere Bandhu Re: The Musical Journey of S D Burman. My own love of Hindi music is as old as I can remember, and even today the songs of the sixties and seventies and even older decades are fresh in memory, and I can sing them all word perfect, and mostly know who wrote, composed and sang them for which film! The music related biographies stem from this interest.

The blurb of Sun Mere Bandhu Re:
S D Burman was singer, musician, composer and teacher all at once-a trailblazer in the truest sense of the term. He was a prince who lived a commoners life, a singer who created tunes instead, a classically trained musician who composed for the lay listener. His incredible career in Hindi cinema spanned three decades-through all the years of which his spirit was as fresh and young as when he started. His compositions were filmed on succeeding generations of stars to unflaggingly wonderful effect.

This chronicle of the life of S. D. Burman tells his story through a kaleidoscope of montages from the inner and outer worlds he inhabited. Fragmented memoirs of his days in the sylvan surroundings of Comilla, interviews, press clippings and archival material piece together the story of the man who created some of Hindi cinemas most enduring songs. Facts and records are knitted into a multidimensional narrative that carries the reader into the little-known world of a man whose contradictions made him unique and gave him a place to call his own in music.

We wish her every success with the book!

Call for Submissions: The DNA-OUT OF PRINT SHORT FICTION SPECIAL

THE DNA-OUT OF PRINT SHORT FICTION SPECIAL – Call For Submissions:

Out of Print Magazine will run a special short fiction featurefor DNA.

The Prize:

Five stories will be chosen for publication in the DNA Sunday spread, ‘Just Before Monday’ by Out of Print’s Indira Chandrasekhar and her editors, Leela Levitt and Ram Sadasiv.

The winner will receive a prize of Rs 10000. The remaining four writers will receive an award of Rs 5000 each.

In addition, prizewinners and shortlisted writers will be published online in DNA’s e-paper.

The Theme:

To reference the choices made, and the transitions affected by the extraordinary Lok Sabha election of 2014, the theme of the fiction feature is CHOICE.

We are not seeking literal interpretations. Stories could comment on the alienation of contemporary life or, in contrast, emphasise the irrelevance of our societal structures by reflecting upon nature. Works could be personal, political or social. But ultimately they should bear some adherence to the theme – CHOICE. Or its lack!

Submission Details:

Submitted works must be in English, previously unpublished and close to 2000 words in length. Stand-alone excerpts from fiction under construction will also be entertained.

Submissions should be cut and pasted into the body of an email and sent to dnashortstories@gmail.com.

Subject line should read ‘DNA-Out of Print Fiction’.

A short bio of 150-200 words should accompany the submission. Winners will be asked to send in a photograph immediately upon notification.

The last date for submissions is Friday, June 27 at midnight, Indian Standard Time.

Writers, whose stories have been chosen for publication, will be informed between July 10 and 12. If you have not heard from us by then, it means, unfortunately, that your piece has not been chosen.

We look forward to receiving your submissions.